Noises in Perak again over opposition leader’s appointment

KUALA LUMPUR – September 6, 2017: The appointment of Perak Pribumi Bersatu chief Faizal Azumu as the state chairman of Pakatan Harapan (PH) is said to have caused more dissension among party members.

One of them, Amalia Adnan, claimed to The Mole that she was at wit’s end trying to explain to supporters as to why the grouping, especially Pribumi Bersatu, did not choose a more seasoned and influential person.

“They don’t know him (Faizal)… they don’t know his track record because he hasn’t done anything significant for the people of Perak,” argued Amalia, who is said to be well-known in Bukit Chandan, Kuala Kangsar.

According to her, the recent leadership tussle within Perak Pribumi Bersatu that Faizal has been mired with reflects the level of support and respect he commands among the grassroots.

“When they named him as the Perak chief, 16 of 24 division chiefs protested and 1,000 members deserted us. They only tolerated it after Tun (party chairman Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad) asked them to accept the decision,” added Amalia.

And to make things worse for Pribumi Bersatu, she alleged, some have started to believe in the contention that DAP had played a decisive role in the appointment.

“To them, this makes sense because the DAP has the most numbers of assemblymen in the state.”

Rahimi Aidil, a Pribumi Bersatu recruiter in Chenderiang, Tapah, spoke of how new party members in his area felt cheated by Faizal’s latest appointment on Friday.

Some, said Rahimi, went as far as surmising that Faizal may end up being a DAP puppet.

“People are talking behind our back and they are talking about how Faizal is basically a Nizar 2.0,” he said in reference to former mentri besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin.

Nizar was the ninth Perak MB whose tenure only lasted 16 months after his Pakatan Rakyat government collapsed in 2009 following the defection of some assemblymen to become BN-friendly independents.

Nizar, who was from Pas but who has since joined Amanah, was accused of being a DAP proxy.

“Perak DAP does not want someone who is influential among the Malays because they’re scared that a vocal leader who they deem to be too Malay will not be good for their support base,” said prominent Srikandi wing member Hamizura Osman.

“When Pribumi Bersatu joined PH I thought DAP had forgiven my sister (Hamidah) for engineering Nizar’s ouster. Clearly, they have yet to bury the hatchet.

“I tried talking to the higher-ups (in the party) about how this ploy may cost Pribumi Bersatu its rural Malay support but apparently everything is okay if it’s done to end Najib’s rule (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak).

“I don’t think I can agree with this. Rural Malays cannot stomach the idea of electing someone who will play puppet to DAP; a party which many of them still regard as chauvinistic,” lamented Hamizura.

About the author

Zaidi Azmi

If Zaidi Azmi isn’t busy finding his way in the city, this 26-year-old northern kampung boy can be found struggling to make sense of the Malaysian political scene. Zaidi can be reached at [email protected]